ALL THE CZARS' CARS!

Russian Motor Vehicles – The Czarist Period: 1784 to 1917 by Maurice Kelly.
Bearing in mind that by 1937 the Soviets had become the largest producers of motor vehicles in Europe, albeit with the help of Henry Ford, it may appear strange that nobody has attempted to document this enterprise in any shape or form in the west. This new book from Veloce Publishing covers the motor vehicle industry in Russia prior to World War I and provides data on steam vehicles, electric vehicles, motor cars, trucks, motor cycles and military vehicles. The writer spent time in the then USSR researching the book, and to his knowledge it is the most comprehensive account of the subject ever produced. The archives of the Polytechnical Museum in Moscow were consulted in depth, and a large number of Russian books in the author’s possession have also been examined to achieve a reliable record of these fascinating machines.

Acknowledging the importance of the information it contains, the publication of this book has been supported by the Michael Sedgwick Trust, based at the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu, England.

THE AUTHOR
Maurice Kelly had a public school education before going into the armed forces, where he was staff on a troopship. He was initially employed in the aircraft industry as a development engineer, and, in 1960, he went to sea as an engineering officer in the British Merchant Navy and the Royal Research Service as well as the Marina Mercante de Republica de Panama, remaining in this capacity until 1979. Since leaving seafaring he has worked as an ISO9000 quality consultant and as a technical author. He has five published works on engineering subjects, and specialises in historical road transport. He is married and has two grown-up children.